Shot 2 to 3" high shooting downhill

[saturnx]

Is there any truth to bullets hitting high when shooting downhill? I was shooting my AR15 (50yds) and my groups were pretty tight, but they were high. I have a Bushnell Trophy red dot optic on my gun. I made several clicks down on the adjustment and it didn't make a difference. Almost all my life I shot firearms with iron sights so this red dot optics is new to me. Any suggestions? I'm shooting reloaded ammo out of my DPMS so I am not looking to win championships just yet (LoL) I'm just plinking now and was curious why I couldn't bring the group down?

Thanks

[MaDuece]

Cosine comes into play when shooting uphill or downhill but you easily should have been able to adjust POI with the red dot.

As for the distance being 50 yards? Unless the angle to target was very steep then cosine wouldn't even be noticeable with a rifle.

The thing to remember when shooting at a steep incline or decline is the distance to your target is not the distance up or down the angle but rather the distance in a horizontal line.

A
l..\
l....\
l......\
l........\
l.........Z
l...........\
l.............\
l...............\
l====Y====X

If you are in position A and shooting at position X then the distance you are shooting is Y and not Z

[bac0nfat]

Look at the extremes. If you put yourself 200 yards in the air, and shoot straight down at a target on the ground, there will be essentially no bullet drop (in reference to your line of sight). So yes, you would shoot high, because your sights would normally be set to compensate for bullet drop, which is no longer there. Now shoot downward at a 45 degree angle, and the effect is still there, just not as noticeable.

[saturnx]

Thank you for the responses it makes sense to me now. I think I am going to zero my scope at 50yards on a level field and just compensate for any angle by shooting slightly lower when needed. Perhaps once I zero this scope in properly that adjustment won't be so drastic. If any of you guys know Daniel Boone Gun club you will know that I am talking about their 50 yard range.

[39flathead]

I was taught to aim low if shooting either uphill or down hill.

[dk99358]

Depending on how high the groups were and how many a few clicks is, you may not have adjusted it far enough. If a riflescope (never worked with a red dot but the principal is the same) moves 1/4 inch at 100 yds for each click, then at 50 yds, each click only get you 1/8 inch.

Dale

[PaBimmerGuy]

if you were a fan of louis lamour youd already know that.

[saturnx]

if you were a fan of louis lamour youd already know that.

Who is that?

I was going to go shooting again today but it rained. My next time out I will take my time and try to adjust this scope. It was the first time I ever shot downhill so it's all new to me.

[dk99358]

Your library is incomplete if it doesn't have several westerns by Louis L'Amour in it.

Dale

[Legion_Prime]

The Haunted Mesa was the first L'Amour book I read back in 6th or 7th grade. Great book, fantastic author!